Dolce Vita! The mother of Jaipur Homme, a sibling of Feminite du Bois, a different side of the same coin. But one I love even more than the rest! If FdB takes cedar and stewed fruits as it’s damascone rich centerpiece, and Jaipur offers the powdery version of it, laced with cinnamon instead of woods, then Dolce Vita takes the best of both worlds. Rich flowers laced with a wonderfully potent cinnamon that recalls facets of Jungle l’Elephant, decadent woods that have seen ripe fruit rotten, a powder veil that recalls older eastern powder compacts and a musky drydown that shows signs of leather. It might be a family member of the above dressed in a leather jacket. Or it might be a leather corset. Even though it never had a major spotlight and it somehow wanted to be seen as a beautiful, jolie, laid back woman living la Dolce Vita, it was far more than that. There was always a darker side to that famous smile in the ads and the mystic musk that envelops the entire composition let’s you take a peek inside. Vintage Dolce Vita (1995 edt bottle reviewed) was a gorgeous powerhouse, although never at Poison decibels that came at a time when spicy fragrances wanted to shed that over the top Opiumness and wanted instead to give a warmer skin aura. Colder spices, creamy trails, all laced with classic floral notes and bursts of freshness up top. Dolce Vita scored all those boxes, and after making us fall in love, she winked and left her animalic breath on skin for hours. What a tease! And what a beauty!! Small note: the coconut that appears as a basenote is in fact castoreum. Or was. I have no idea how watered down the modern versions are.